but to the good citizens of virginia, rest easy knowing your streets are safe. there is one place where there is the labra-lion, and that is the ridiculous list. "early start" begins now. a flu epidemic sweeping through dozens of states. hospitals are crowded from new england to the dakotas. >> vice president biden and the nra, their much-hyped gun control sitdown, hours away. >> and hollywood's best waiting with anticipation. we are counting down to the academy award nominations. >> i can't wait. >> are you excited? >> i love the movies. sure. >> so do i. >> i think "argo" is the only one i want to see that got a lot of nominations. >> welcome to "early start." i'm zoraida sambolin. >> i'm john berman.

we will start with the flu. it is spreading with a vengeance across the u.s. not only did the flu season get off to a really early start, cases are proving to be more severe than last year. the latest flu advisory says 41 states are dealing with widespread activity, more than 2,200 people are hospitalized. the hardest-hit states, pennsylvania and south carolina. each reporting 22 flu-related deaths. illinois now says they had six deaths. cases in south dakota spiked, almost doubling in the span of a week. it's so ban in boston, they declared a public health emergency. since october there have been 700 confirmed cases in boston, a rate ten times higher than last year. >> we've seen 18 deaths reported to us so far this season. associated with influenza-like illness. predominantly among older individuals. what we are hearing from clinicians all over the state is that strains of flu that people

are preventing with is quite severe. we're seeing rates of hospitalization, certainly higher than the last two years. >> the cdc says the flu strain going around is tougher to shake than usual, but the good news is the strain does match up well to the vaccine that's being given out nationwide. we will talk more about this flu and the spread coming up with elizabeth cohen in the next hour. >> is it too late to get a flu vaccine? >> never too late. vice president biden revealing the white house is prepared to bypass congress to push through tough new gun control laws. that announcement coming hours before today's talks between biden's gun violence commission and gun rights groups, including the national rifle association. it is shaping up to be a long day for the vice president. later this morning he meets with sportsmen and wildlife groups. this afternoon it's representatives from gun owners groups, including the nra. tonight the entertainment industry weighs in on how violence in the media may be

influencing the problem. when it is all said and done biden acknowledges his boss is prepared to use the powers of the presidency to enact his own comprehensive gun control plan. >> the president is going to act. there are executive orders, executive action that can be taken. we have not decided what that is yet. we are compiling it all with the help of the attorney general and the rest of the cabinet members, as well as legislative action we believe is required. >> white house correspondent dan lothian is live in washington. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> there is a lot going on behind the scenes. let's talk about this executive action. what is the president planning to do? >> as you heard the vice president say, they are not laying out details as to what it is the president would do in order to move forward on some gun measures. what's clear here is the political environment in washington, we've seen over the last several months, how it's been very difficult to get movement on anything that goes down to the wire for lawmakers

to come up with some sort of bipartisan agreement. what the vice president is spelling out here, is floating, essentially he's talking about the reality of the current political climate here in washington. yes, there are things that can be done legislatively. but if those things can't be done, then the president is willing to act alone. why? because he says it's time to act no now. >> i want to make it clear that we are not going to get caught up in the notion, unless we can do everything we'll do nothing. it's critically important that we act. >> in addition to these meetings that you spelled out earlier that the vice president is holding today, yesterday he also met with some faith leaders. they talked about the moral imperative to act quickly. he also had a conference call with governors, other stated and local officials across the country. they're really trying to push this through quickly.

there's that deadline. the president wants the vice president to come back with policy proposals by the end of this month. >> so many different views are weighing in there. the white house is asking for congress to pass regulations on gun control in addition to the executive action. how are gun companies and gun rights groups reacting to this? >> some of the gun companies out there are not happy about this. they think a ban on assault weapons would be bad for business. the nra pushed back on that ban saying it's "a phony piece of legislation." indeed, right now what we know is shaping up is what the white house says congress can do, which is this ban on assault weapons. they can close some of the loopholes when it comes to background checks. they can ban these high capacity magazines. there's a lot of concern from the nra and other gun groups. they say there needs to be a broader approach. that gun control is not the way to solve this problem, but that you need to look at things such as mental health and violent

video games. >> comprehensive action. thank you very much, dan lothian. >> we are hearing from a really interesting voice on the issue of gun control right now. retired general stanley mcchrystal, the man who once led the war in afghanistan is coming out in favor of stronger gun control laws. mcchrystal said he spent a career carrying assault weapons, and though he approves them for soldiers, he believes there's no place for them in civil society. >> but i don't want those weapons around our schools or around our streets. i think that if we can't -- it is not a complete fix to just address assault weapons. but i think if we don't get very serious now when we see children being buried, then i can't think of a time when we should. >> mcchrystal says he believes most people who own these weapons are not properly prepared to carry them. break out the score cards you will need them to keep track of the comings and goings in the president's cabinet.

the white house chief of star, jack lew, will be named treasury secretary, and now there is a search for a new position now that solis has stepped down. kathleen sebelius will continue to serve in the president's second term. in colorado, the evidence hearing against james holmes is over a couple days earlier than expected. the judge will decide tomorrow if the case will go to trial. homes is accused of opening fire inside that aurora, colorado movie theater last july killing 12 and injuring dozens. yesterday police say they found evidence that holmes cased the theater for weeks ahead of time. and a race to free a pack of killer whales trapped in ice in

a small canadian village in northern quebec. experts are being sent to the scene today to see what can be done to save them. if the hole they're using to breathe and say afloat freezes over, they will die. >> it's so sad and so stunning. >> in the next hour we will talk with william hurley about the effort to save these wheels. roger clemens now knows what it's like to be on the receiving end. clemens and barry bonds shut out of the hall of fame. 75% of the votes are needed to get in clemens and bonds falling far short with less than 40% each. sosa barely registering 12%. no one got in, but craig biggio came closest. he appeared on 68.2% of the

ballots, just 39 votes short. >> the last time this happened where nobody got in was 1996. the person who got robbed was craig biggio. he has 3,060 hits a second baseman for a long time. there's no reason that he should not have been admitted. what happens is baseball writers get all high and mighty and say maybe he shouldn't get in on the first ballot. he will get in next year or the following year, so why not now? what's wrong with these baseball writers? >> they should have you join. >> that would be awesome. new jersey governor chris christie on the cover of "time" magazine this week. critics don't like it not because it's christie, they're upset about the photo itself. plus steven spielberg's historic epic ready for an oscar closeup. we will go live to los angeles where the nominations will be unveiled this morning. >> how many hundreds of thousands are dead? was homemade.

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. can you feel the excitement? welcome back to "early start." it's a big day in hollywood. nominations for the academy awards will be announced in just over three hours. we could see as many as ten films vying for the best picture prize. who will get in? who will be left out? will there be a scandal? nischelle turner is up early in our l.a. bureau. let's start with best picture. >> okay. you know there's always a scandal in hollywood. stay tuned for that later on this morning. if i remember correctly, just a few weeks ago during the golden globes announcement, you were so excited you could barely stand it. >> jumping out of my seat. >> i know you are. we'll get this for you just a couple hours this morning. but i have to say, there's a couple of races this year that could be pretty tight for the oscars. best picture is one of them so

what we did is we put together a look at who could get a very good wakeup call this morning. look at this. >> i like our chances now. >> the campaign for best picture is about to get real, and there's no doubt "lincoln" will be a leading candidate. steven spielberg's civil war drama should land a slew of nominations. >> daniel day-lewis for best actor. you will see him nominated and he's by far the front-runner to win. i'm sure you will see sally field nominated in supporting actress. and also tommy lee jones in supporting actor. >> as many as ten movies to be nominated for best picture. deadline.com's steve hammond points to a handful of contenders. >> "les miserables" is certain to be nominated. "argo" and "zero dark thirty" will be nominated.

>> jennifer lawrence, bradley cooper and robert de niro, has endured an oscar dry spell. >> robert de niro has not been nominated for 21 years. >> among the possible nominees, one movie stands out as a question mark. what will oscar voters make of quinton tarantino's "django unchained" >> it could get a ton of nominations or virtually nothing. it's either or. >> reporter: critics have not been silent. some of them accusing tarantino of travelizing slavery. >> it's such a box office hit that could only hurt. >> reporter: the controversy should make for a suspenseful oscar nomination announcement. and that announcement will come in just a few hours. we'll have it live here on cnn

in a special we're calling "the nomination" this morning. that starts at 8:00. soledad and a.j. hammer will be in new york. i'll be here in los angeles. we'll have the oscar nominations live. now, we talked about best picture. you're right, the oscar -- the academy could nominate up to ten movies for best picture. "django unchained" is on the bubble there. if they nominate five, they can be shut out. if they expand it to six, seven, eight, it should be in there. we saw silver linings play book in there which has become a darling for the academy. >> my favorite category is director. you have an all-star team of directors who probably will get nominated this year. >> absolutely. it's going to be a fun morning. kind of like my pro bowl announcement of entertainment this morning, john berman.

>> we are glad to share this pro bowl moment with you. we want to hear your predictions and opinions. go to the starting point blog at cnn.com/startingpoint. we're asking for your picks for best actor, best actress, best picture. you can tweet us at startingpoi startingpoint #cnn. >> here is christine romans with the top stories. president obama considering the use of executive order to bypass congress and fast track comprehensive new gun control laws, that's according to joe biden. biden meets with the nra and representatives of the entertainment industry and sportsman and wild life group. >> ntsb investigators on the scene of a new york ferry crash. this ferry slammed into a pier in lower manhattan, throwing passengers around lying rag

dolls. 85 people were injured in this crash. one critically. overseas, large parts of the middle east feeling the effects of a powerful winter storm that brought snow and severe flooding. it stretches from jordan and israel into lebanon and turkey. the worst of the storm may be felt in syria where thousands displaced by the several war are in refugee camps dealing with flooding and bitter cold. very closely watching that storm this morning in the middle east. thanks. it is now 18 minutes past the hour. time for "early reads" your local news making national headlines. starting with the newark star ledger, sort of tony soprano's home paper. he said some italian-americans are upset at the "time" magazine cover which shows chris christie mugshot pose. even christie suggested it made him look like a mob boss.

"time" magazine is owned by the parent company of this network. this from the "seattle times." the emerald city lost their nba team five years ago the supersonics. now there are reports that the seattle group is negotiating to buy the sacramento kings for some $500 million and move the team to seattle. the sacramento mayor says not so fast. he is a former nba player, and he's vowing to fight to keep the kings in town. the maloof family, which owns the kings, has not said publicly that the team is for sale. i don't want to diss a.j. or sacrament to but there are questions whether the maloofs had the finances to support a team in sacramento to begin with. >> a very complicated story. a lot of folks upset about this. some happy, some upset. coming up, the new rules out for mortgages and how they're supposed to protect you, the

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. good morning to you, new york city. it is 22 minutes past the hour. we are minding your business. u.s. stock futures are trading higher after positive economic news out of china. >> christine romans is here. >> the business news is you have a couple updates for stocks, stuff happening in europe. some china data that was better than expectations. we are also watching gun stocks. as i told you, there has been a rally in gun stocks since the newtown massacre. why? there's been a run on guns. that rally fizzled yesterday as vice president biden and word from his office that, hey, maybe an executive order could be on the table. look at how the stocks went there? the gunmakers stocks fell. ruger down about 1%.

smith & wesson dropped more than 2%, but still positive over the past five days. watching that fizzle. it's not just the gunmakers, we watched the retailers. the big major sporting retailers sell a lot of these guns. stocks like cabela's and dick's sporting goods fell about 1%. this made no move on walmart's stock, but walmart will be attending those meetings after initially saying a scheduling conflict prevented them from being there. another big story we're watching. new mortgage rules. the government coming out with rules for lenders. lenders have to write mortgages that people can pay back. >> novel idea. >> for the first time, i can't believe it's here. new rules that make a mortgage qualified what makes a mortgage qualified? a person has to have money or

assets -- remember the ninja loans? no income, no loans no assets. you have to have a job, documented employment, you have to have a credit score, you have to be able to afford the monthly payments. remarkable, giving someone a loan knowing they can afford it. you have to afford your other housing debts and expenses, and lenders have to consider other debts. this is in response to what happened in the financial crisis. this is supposed to make it so banks, lenders, all lenders can't do risky lending. how many times have you heard a homeowner say, well they told me i could afford this. no, i don't have a job. i didn't have any money. i didn't have any assets. it won't make it easier to get a loan t will make it easier to not get snookered by someone. >> 25 minutes past the hour. secretary of state hillary

clinton looking forward to life after the state department. you will hear from her coming up. and doctors just operated on one of the most valuable right knees if all of sports. find out how rg3's surgery went. [ male announcer ] in blind taste tests, even ragu users chose prego.

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creepy but is he insane? chilling self-portraits of james holmes emerged in court amid talks of an insanity defense. the flu is running rampant and several states declaring a flu emergency. wildlife 101.

a close-up lesson for some school kids in ohio when a deer dropped in for an unexpected visit. >> it is a bizarre story. can i give some of it away? >> no. you have to watch it. >> it's so crazy. a little unbelievable. >> welcome back to "early start." it is 29 minutes past the hour. glad you are with us. the flu is spreading with a vengeance, it is across the united states. the cdc's latest flu advisory suggesting 41 states are dealing with widespread activity. more than 2,200 people have been hospitalized. the hardest hit states, pennsylvania and north carolina, each reporting 22 flu-replated deaths. massachusetts reporting a medical emergency. since october, 700 confirmed cases in boston, a race ten times higher than last year. a texas teen visiting family in wisconsin over the holidays actually died when his flu

turned into ammonia and then turned into a staph infection. >> he said, mom, i'm scared. i said i know, buddy, i am, too. he said i love you. that's the last coherent thing he said to me. >> the cdc said the flu strain going around is tougher to shake. but the good news is the strain matches up well to the vaccine being given out nationwide. elizabeth cohen will join us later to talk about this. that specific family, what they went through. >> in colorado, the evidence hearing against james holmes is over. a judge will decide tomorrow if this case will go to trial. holmes is accused of killing 12 and wounding dozens and dozens in the aurora movie theater massacre. the prosecution had shown holmes took pictures of the theater prior to the shooting and self-portraits holmes took of himself posing with his guns.

families of the victims believe it shows holmes planned the shootings down to the last detail and he knew exactly what he was doing. we want to get the latest from ed lavendera. >> reporter: six hours before james holmes burst into theater nine, the accused theater snapped self-portraits using his iphone. these are sketches of the photographs shown in court wearing black eye contacts, holmes smiled while holding a handgun near his face. fully dressed in the bulletproof gear he would wear into the theater. in another, his orange hair is st seen sticking out of a stocking cap as he stuck out his ton. t tom says holmes is an animal. >> he is not crazy one bit. he's very, very cold.

he's very, very calculated. >> reporter: prosecutors spent the last three days laying out a detailed timeline of how holmes planned the massacre. investigators say james holmes started casing the movie theater about three weeks before the shooting. they say he came here on thee different occasions and snapped off a series of pictures they found on his iphone showing various hallways and doors, even the exit to theater number 9. james holmes deadly plan fee more like the deranged creation of a fictional villain in a batman movie. prosecutors say holmes spent weeks planning the attack, stockpiling weapons and rigging an explosive system in his apartment timed to detonate just before he started the killing spree. >> this is the backside of the century 16 movie theater. it's still closed, surrounded by a chain link fence. but investigators say james holmes parked his car right there, and walked into the movie theater like anybody else.

but he walked into the theater and then came out through this exit door, that's the exit daughter to theater number 9. investigators say he put that clip on the door and it propped it open. he came out here, put on his ballistic gear, picked up his ammunition and weaponry and was able to walk back into the theater. >> it was complete, you know, planning. it was competency. it was everything on his part to make sure that this act was carried out from start to finish. >> it was well thought out. it was very deliberate. it was calculated. >> reporter: but all these disturbing details we've learned in the past three days tonight explain why james holmes wanted to kill so many people.lavander president obama is considering using executive order to push through

comprehensive new gun control laws. that's according to joe biden. the vice president is heading up the gun violence commission and he has a full and packed schedule today. this morning he meets with sportsmen and wildlife groups. this afternoon it's representatives from gun owners groups, including the nra. tonight the entertainment industry weighs in. biden says all ideas are welcomed, but the president already has a plan. >> the president is going to act. there are executive orders, action that can be taken. we haven't decided what that is yet. we're compiling it all with the help of the attorney general and all the rest of the cabinet members. as well as legislative action. >> biden's commission is charged with making recommendations for new gun control laws to the president by the end of this month. what is in hillary clinton's future once she leaves her post as secretary of state? once again she has left everyone guessing. in her first public appearance

on wednesday since returning from her illness, she described her final days at the state department as bitter sweet. when a reporter asked if she's heading into retirement, this is what she said. >> i don't know if that's a word i would use. but certainly stepping off the very fast track for a little while. >> for a little while. what does that mean? >> you read into everything that she says, right? >> i absolutely do. because she shut no doors there. she repeatedly said that running for the white house in 2016 is not something she is "thinking about" but, you know, she has not completely ruled it out yet. rg3 is back on the road to recovery this morning. the washington redskins rookie quarterback is in store for months and months of rigorous rehab after having surgery to repair two ligaments in his right knee yesterday. dr. james andrews who operated on griffith says he expects a

full recovery and hopes he would be ready for the 2013 season. i think it's optimistic to expect him back at the beginning of the season. the oscar countdown begins in earnest, it's three hours from now. that's when the nominees will be announced in los angeles. stev steven spielberg's "lincoln" is expected to be nominated as well as "playbook." >> are you going want me home or what? >> you mean me? >> yeah, you. you want me home? >> you have poor social skills. you have a problem. >> i have a problem? >> yeah. >> you say more inappropriate things than appropriate things. you scare people. >> i tell the truth. >> along with lawrence, jessica chastain for "zero dark thirty" and naomi watts a expected to

contend in the best actress category, along with marion cotillard. we will bring you the nominations here live. we want to hear your predictions and opinions on the oscar nominations go to the starting point blog, cnn.com/startingpoint. we're asking for your picks for best actor, best actress and best picture. if you're tweeting it's #cnnnom. >> and there could be up to ten best picture nominations. hard to get it wrong. 38 minutes after the hour. not a typical school day by any means. coming up, we're talk to two people about their close encounter with a deer in the classroom. plus illegal use of the hands, a basketball fan crosses the line. >> oh, no. when you have diabetes...

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all right. you have to look at this. unbelievable video this morning out of ohio. a deer broke into a classroom, you can see it running around there trapped, angry. poor thing. this is at king's junior high school in ohio. this went on until a teacher shot the deer with a tranquilizing gun. that's the teacher there with the gun. you can see it. the great news is he's here with us this morning. dustin goldie, also with us is nick montag, very cool, he shoot have of that deer that you saw right there. so interesting, guys. dustin and nick, both here with us this morning. dustin, let me start with you, why do you have a tranquilizing gun? >> well, i'm a white tail deer farmer. it's kind of a must to have in the business. and we got to be able to tranquilize our deer to give them medicines, to saw off the

antlers and transport them. >> you didn't have it at school, though. they called you at home. how did this go down? it was very early in the morning, wasn't it? >> yeah it was 7:00 in the morning. i was told to come down to the junior high to assess the situation with the white tail deer. i went down, checked it out. indeed there was a white tail deer running around in the classroom. i decided to offer my services. i let my principal know that i have a tranquilizer gun, if you need me. after many local authorities showed up, it came to the -- everybody came to the conclusion there was no one available with a taranquilizer dart around. they asked me, would you go and get your tranquilizer gun? i left school, and i went and got it. >> as we said, this happened early in the morning. there was a teach eveec teacher in the classroom at the time. they got out safely.

any idea how long that deer was in there? >> i would say two, two and a half hours. >> nick, you were in a media class as this was going on. what did they have you do? >> well, we're supposed to portray news broadcast team. we were walking around trying to get some news stories. we had all of our film equipment with us. we were like, my gosh, we have to go get this we were sitting out there for hours, just filming anything. >> at cnn, we would have put up a breaking news banner as you were covering it. is this the first time you had news like this to cover? >> yeah, definitely. >> you know, dustin, have you seen deer do this before? you raise deer on your farm. have they crashed through any windows that you've seen? >> it helps being around white tail deer and knowing their

behavior, they're a very exciting animal to be around and to see him in a confined space like that, i knew that was a problem. thank goodness our principal, our superintendent, they all were able to come together quickly, get the kids safe. that was our number one priority, to keep the students and all the children safe that day. >> they were safe. it must have been an interesting morning. we should say the law where you are says that deer did have to be destroyed afterwards. a bit of a sad ending there, but happy in the fact that no one was hurt. thank you for sharing this moment with us. >> you're welcome. thank you. what an incredible story. isn't that crazy? a deer would come crashing through the window a mix of old and new will take stage next month at the grammy awards. the black keys and fun will perform and they will join

rihanna and -- oh, yes sh -- >> it's taylor swift, right? >> why are you shaking your head? >> she's the most honored, awarded, recognized person on the earth. >> and this song plays in my home. more performers will be announced soon. the awards will be handed out on february 10th. i work out to that song. >> do you really? apparently a lot. you are in great shape. the danger from above. coming up, a narrow escape from death for some workers when a crane collapses. >> plus ejected. a sports fan gets into the action. you know what happens. he gets himself tossed out. this happy couple used capital one venture miles

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49 minutes past the hour. let's get you up to date. >> good morning. vice president biden and his gun violence commission will face off with the nra today. the panel will also talk to representatives of the entertainment industry and sportsmen and wildlife groups today. the vice president revealing that the white house may use executive orders to bypass congress and the gun lobby. a close call for seven new york city construction workers injured when a crane collapsed at a queens work site. the mobile crane tumbled on to the construction side yesterday

afternoon. three workers suffered serious injuries. one construction worker said he was this close to death. check out this fan getting too involved in last night's college basketball game against nevada las vegas. the fan pushing anthony marshall after he stepped out of bounds. the fan was escorted out of the building. >> why did he do that? >> you lose fan points there for sure. thanks. 50 minutes after the hour. severe weather to start the day in the gulf region. alexander steel here in the weather center. good morning. good morning. we have two storm systems, one is a rainmaker, the second is a snowmaker. let's start with the rainmaker and also this pummelling in louisiana, east of lake charles, reports already of 12 inches of rain. tornado watch there denoted

until 12:00 central time. so 1:00 eastern. even within that, we have north of lafayette, louisiana, a tornado warning reported. so there is potentially some rotation, what's for the next 20 minutes. here's what will happen with that. through today and into tonight, it finds chicago. chicago in the 40s today. 50s friday and saturday. so rain for the midwest. and then by friday night rush hour, it moves to new york. but temperature-wise you won't believe how warm we'll be. it's really the yin and the yang, the tale of two stories. here on the east, it's warm. new york averages 38. it will be 50 on saturday. 60s in washington. 70 in atlanta, georgia. should be about 52. so 20 degrees above average on the east coast. and on the west coast, a whole different affair. we'll look at salt lake city, between 5 and 10 inches of snow between today and friday. so big-time cold, guys, coming

to the west. rockies, a bomb for skiers in the west. >> a summer weekend in new york. >> yes. >> 20 degrees above average. >> thank you. we have a packed hour ahead on "early start," including a race to save the whales. ice is closing in. it's a tragic story. the technology needed to save them still very far away. we will talk to an expert from one of the biggest aquariums in the world about their chance of survival and a surprise for a couple of hurricane sandy victims. their house was filled with four feet of water and mold, they thought it would be gutted, but they had no idea that volunteers made it as good as know. >> first, i call thimble, i call the top hat. no matter which piece you like you better vote for it soon or it may be gone forever. we'll tell you why. olaf gets grs for his small business!

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welcome back. 56 minutes after the hour, i'm john berman. she's zoraida sambolin. we're looking at some of the top cnn trends this morning. >> do not collect $200, hasbro the maker of the board game is replacing one of the tokens on the monopoly board game with one that's more popular with players. they want people to vote on the ones they want to save. >> i had a friend so alarmed by this yesterday that he called

me. >> what's the piece? >> i am a hat fan. >> what does your friend want saved? >> the thimble. >> okay. i'll do a thimble. . reports of lion on the loose in norfolk, virginia. some very startled people called 911 to report a lion was roaming the streets. listen to this. >> 911, what's your emergency? >> i would like to report a lion sighting. >> i just saw an animal that looked like a small lion, had the mane and everything. >> i saw a baby lion on 50th street. >> this is a lion that ran across the street. a baby lion. >> okay. >> was about the size of a labrador retriever. >> that last caller was on to something, because the reason the lion was the size of a labrador retriever is because the lion was actually a

labradoodle. the owner gets him groomed to look like the mascot from old dominion university. we're told he's much better with kids than a lion would be. he does. >> he does. can you imagine? >> he looks like a lion. >> you see that you'll be calling 911, too. how adorable. to check out our top cnn trends go to cnn.com/trends. late night last night, the boys going a couple of old favorites. >> consumer electronics show is happening in vegas. the most amazing gadgets are being talked about. >> yeah. >> it's been in the news. one of the gadgets everyone is talking about this year is a fork that tells you when you're eating too fast. that's true. a fork that tells you when you're eating too fast in a related story today, chris christie was spotted yelling at

his fork to mind its own business. shut up! >> today the president hosted a screening of the white house comedy "1600 penn" which centers on a goofy guy which keeps embarrassing the white house. or as joe biden put it, why does everyone keep looking at me. >> it is kind of cool. sorry. i was tracking the flu on my iphone. >> watch it. a flu epidemic sweeping through dozens of states. hospitals are crowded from new england down to the dakotas. >> very serious. vice president biden and the nra, their much-hyped gun control sitdown hours away. and desperate hours. the race against the clock to save whales trapped by ice. an amazing story out there. very sad. welcome to "early start."

>> i hope they can save them. i'm zoraida sambolin, it's thursday, january 10th. just about 6:00 a.m. in the east. nasty, severe cases of the flu are vengeance across the united states. the cdc's latest flu advisory suggesting 41 states are dealing with widespread activity. look at the map. more than 2200 people have been hospitalized. the hardest-hit areas, pennsylvania and south carolina, each reporting 22 flu-related deaths. massachusetts declaring a medical emergency there. 700 confirmed cases in boston, that's since october. rates ten times higher than what they saw last year. let's bring in senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen. she is in flower mound, texas, with details of one fatal case. elizabeth, what happened? >> reporter: i spent the morning with the family yesterday. their son, max, 17 years old, attended this church. december 22nd he was feeling

great. they were on vacation up north, he was having a great time, and then he started feeling sick. he was sick for about two days and then he got better for another two days, even went sledding and had snowball fights with his sister. and then he got worse again. he felt terrible. his parents brought him to the hospital. a small rural hospital. and very quickly they said your son is very sick. his kidneys are shutting down. we're going to put him on a helicopter to go to a larger hospital. and this is what max said to his mother as he was getting on that helicopter. >> one of the last coherent things he said, he looked at me and there were some tears rolling down his face. >> he was scared. >> he was scared. he said, mom, i'm scared. i said i know, buddy, i am too. and then he saw me crying. he said, mom, it's going to be okay. you're going to be okay. i love you. >> so max was airlifted to that larger hospital, went straight into the intensive care unit and four days later he died.

his family, of course, reeling from how quickly this all happened, does not max to be remembered for the love that was in his heart. they said that he loved god, he loved his family, he loved his friends and that's why they have got this term love to the max out there. they're making t-shirts, they have sold more than a thousand. they want to spread the word about his big heart. >> did he have a compromised immune system or was he absolutely healthy prior to this? >> reporter: he was completely healthy. that happens much more than you would think. even completely healthy people can die of the flu. what happened in his case was that he had a -- he had the flu. he started feeling better and then a secondary infection started in. and so i know that this makes parents very worried. >> it does. >> reporter: they think how would i know what to look for. it does, absolutely. this is one of the things that you look for. if your child or you for that matter is feeling better and then starts feeling worse, that is not a good sign. that's a sign that you need medical attention.

another sign especially with children is extreme lethargy. if your child doesn't want to play, doesn't want to get out of bed, all they want to do is sleep, that's a problem. confusion is also a sign thant things have gone downhill very quickly. most people who get the flu do perfectly fine. but when things go bad, they go bad very quickly. >> a lot of folks are wondering whether or not they have time to get a flu shot. did he get a flu shot? >> reporter: no, he didn't have a flu shot. i talked to his parents about that. he was in a house with 15 other relatives, several of whom had had flu shots and they also got the flu. so you can get the flu with a flu shot. you can also -- you're much more likely to get the flu if you don't have a flu shot. there's still time, it's not too late. there's still a lot of flu out there. my advice, everybody's advice, go out there and get the flu shot, it's not too late. >> such a tragic story, really appreciate that the parents took the time to talk to you about this and raise awareness.

thank you very much, elizabeth cohen. just about four minutes after the hour right now. in washington, president obama looking for ways to fast track some new gun control action without congress. vice president biden revealing the commander in chief is considering using executive orders. that announcement coming on the eve of this afternoon's talks between biden's gun violence commission and the national rifle association. it will be a long day for the vice president. this morning he meets with sportsmen and wildlife groups. this afternoon, representatives from gun owners groups including the nra and tonight the entertainment industry weighs in. at the end of the day biden acknowledges his boss is prepared to use the powers of the presidency to push through parts of his own plan. >> the president is going to act. there are executive orders, executive action that can be taken. we haven't decided what that is yet, but we're compiling it all with help of the attorney general and all the rest of the cabinet members as well as

legislative action we believe is required. >> white house correspondent dan lothian is live now from washington. dan, there's a lot going on behind the scenes here, but let's start with that executive action. what do you think that means? >> reporter: well, it is exactly what the vice president said, that they're looking for ways to act very quickly. there is this legislative track that they believe can be effective as well, but the vice president making the point that there are things that the president can do on his own in order to prevent some of these violent acts like we saw in connecticut. and so we don't know exactly what the specifics are. the vice president indicating that they're still trying to compile some of those specifics. but nonetheless there's the political environment, the reality of the political environment that they know. it's very difficult to get things to move through congress very quickly. we've seen that play out in the fiscal fights over the last few months, frankly over the last few years, and so they are looking at this as another option for the president to move quickly and in the vice

president's own words, to save a lot of lives. >> if your actions result in only saving one life, they're worth taking. but i'm convinced we can affect the well-being of millions of americans and take thousands of people out of harm's way if we act responsibly. >> reporter: he met with a dozen faith leaders. they talked about the moral imperative to act quickly. in addition to that, he had held a conference call with governors and also other state and local leaders across the country. they're trying to come up with as many options as possible so they can put together these policy proposals to present to the president by the end of the month. >> and today, of course, the vice president meets with gun companies and gun rights groups. how are they reacting so far to the comments yesterday? >> reporter: well, you know, i think they're very concerned when they hear that the president can do things on his own. we heard from larry pratt with the gun owners of america.

they have not been invited to the table to take part in these discussions, but nonetheless he had very strong reaction to these developments. take a listen. >> what i'm concerned about and what i've been concerned about since even well before the elections is having seen the president rule by executive order where he has no authority in other areas, i can see that he would just go ahead and -- the vice president has even hinted at an executive order that would accomplish some or all of their gun control agenda. that, i think, changes the game and throws into question the legitimacy of the federal government. >> reporter: now, there are gun companies that are concerned about talk of a ban on assault weapons. they say that that would be bad for business. in addition, the nra saying that assault weapons ban is a, quote, phony piece of legislation. so, john, everyone agrees that something has to be done to prevent these mass shootings,

but clearly finding solutions will not be easy. >> dan lothian live in washington today. thanks very much. >> so this time yesterday we were talking about wal-mart not attending the vice president's gun control meetings. today very different story, christine. >> after a few hours of very pointed questions about why walmart would not be attending and why a scheduling conflict prevented any of its executives or lobbyists to be at these meetings, wal-mart changed its tune yesterday morning and said, well, they had underestimated the anticipation or the thinking that they should actually be there in person and they would be going. look, why is walmart a stakeholder in these talks? walmart is the world's largest retailer. walmart sells the ar-15 style bushmaster modern sporting rifle like the one that was used in newtown so it sells guns, it sells ammunition and the company told me very clearly they have a lot of rules about buying weapons at walmart that say go beyond the law.

they videotape every single transaction that happens. but clearly wal-mart profits from the sale of these weapons and walmart being at the table was important when you look at all of the other participants that were there. >> you were one of the people asking all of the tough questions to walmart about why they were not going to the meeting. were they surprised that you were asking? >> they thought too much was being made of the story, that they didn't need to be there. they had a phone conversation earlier in the week with the vice president's office and that was enough. they had monthly sales meetings already scheduled. of course the optics are this. they had monthly sales meetings scheduled for months. newtown wasn't planned. you know, the vice president's invitation comes on the wake of something that was spontaneous and horrific. that's why the meeting was there. clearly that trumps an already scheduled monthly sales meeting when you are quite likely the world's largest seller of weapons. >> and you would think they want to be there. >> well, they will be there now. let's talk cabinet now.

who's in, who's out? jack lew will be nominated today to be the next treasury secretary and the search is on right now for a new labor secretary now that hilda solis announced she is stepping down. eric holder will be working on the new gun control measures but insiders say he may be looking to leave office in the next six to 12 months. the white house also announcing that kathleen sebelius will continue to serve the president in his second term. >> the evidence hearing against james holmes has concluded in colorado. the presiding judge will decide tomorrow if this case goes to trial. >> holmes is accused of opening fire inside the movie theater in aurora last july killing 12 and wounding dozens. yesterday prosecutors claim holmes cased the theater up to four weeks before the massacre. they presented photos that were recovered from his cell phone along with chilling photos of him posing with weapons. a race against time to free a pack of killer whales trapped

by ice. they are trapped in a 50 foot by 50 foot space in northern quebec. experts are being sent to the scene to see what, if anything, they can do to save them. but if the hole they're using to breathe freezes over, they will eventually die. open water is at least six miles away. in the next half hour we'll talk with william hurley about the desperate effort to save these killer whales. after yesterday's hall of fame vote roger clemens knows what it's like to be on the wrong ending of a shutout. clemens along with barry bonds and sammy sosa all shut out in the balloting for baseball's highest honor. each of them tainted by the game's steroid scandal. 75% of votes are needed to get in. clemens and bonds each had less than 40%. sammy sosa barely picked up 12%. amazing for a guy with 600 home runs. no one got into the hall of fame yesterday. that's the first time that's happened since 1996. in my opinion, the biggest injustice might be for someone who had no connection to

steroids at all, craig bizio fell just 39 votes short. >> what did mlb say? >> major league baseball does not run the hall of fame. they said they respect the hall of fame's right to do things how they want and they look forward to votes in the future. it's not good for baseball not to have someone elected but it has happened in the past. the next few years some of the really great untainted players come up for election. so you won't see this in the next few minutes. 12 minutes past the hour. we're counting down to this morning's academy award nominations. that is coming up. and call it a wild moose chase. more of this video and the story behind it. that's ahead. many of my patients clean their dentures with toothpaste.

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15 minutes past the hour. welcome back to "early start." plenty of early risers in hollywood hoping to hear their names called when the oscar nominations are announced less than two and a half hours from now. we have a bit of a preview.

good morning. i'm nervous. >> reporter: you know, it literally is zero dark thirty right here in los angeles. it's a big day here. john and i were joking before. it's kienlnd of like my super b or pro bowl of super at the same time here. we're about two hours away from the oscar nominations this morning. what i love about the academy is they always zig when other folks zag so you're probably going to get a surprise nomination. and conventional wisdom is this was a very good year for films so there's a little something for everyone. the campaign for best picture is about to get real and there's no doubt "lincoln" will be a leading can dad. it should land a slew of nominations and not just for best picture. >> daniel day lewis obviously for best actor. you're going to see him nominated and he's by far the

front runner to win. i'm sure you'll see sally field nominated in supporting actress and also tommy lee jones in supporting actor. >> reporter: as many as ten movies could be nominated for best picture. deadline.com's pete hammond points to a handful of top contenders. >> in addition to "lincoln," "les mis." "argo". >> reporter: it should score for best picture and its stars. robert de niro has endured an oscar dry spell. >> robert de niro who has not been nominated, believe it or not, for 21 years. >> reporter: among the possible oscar nominees, one movie stands out as a major question mark. what will oscar voters make of quentin tarantino's "django unchained." >> it could be one that gets a ton of nominations or virtually

nothing. it's either/or. >> reporter: the d may be silent but critics haven't been, some of them accusing tarantino of trivializing save re. >> it's such a box office hit, that can only hit. >> reporter: it should make for a suspensionful oscar nomination announcement. now, most of the experts are saying if the academy decides to expand the best picture category, then "django" could get a nomination if they go to seven, ailt or nine movies, but it would be a surprise this morning if the movie's lead actor, jamie foxx, does get a nomination for best actor because that is one of the tightest races this year. it is a great category. you're going to see people like denzel washington and daniel day lewis get nominated but you could see richard gere, joaquin phoenix, bradley cooper get left out. so there's going to be some -- i don't know, some upset fellas

here in hollywood this morning. i'm excited for that race. >> i love jamie foxx in that movie. i thought he was incredible. it would be great to see him on that list, but that competition very, very list. >> reporter: yeah, that's a big one. >> our special oscar coverage begins at 8:15 eastern and of course we'll bring you the nominations right here live. so we want to hear your predictions and your opinions on all the oscar nominations. go to the starting point blog, cnn.com/startingpointing. we're asking for your picks for best actor, best actress and best picture. keep in touch with us throughout the entire morning. 19 minutes after the hour and if you've never seen a moose up close, jeff palmer suggests you do it by visiting the zoo, because it is no fun running into a moose on the slopes. check this out. that's the 19-year-old palmer at sugar bush resort in vermont just before christmas. he was minding his own business when the moose started charging.

>> what? >> so he did the right thing. which is he kicked off his skis and ran. >> i looked over my shoulder and it was closing on me very fast. my life flashed before my eyes. not the way i want to see a moose for the first time. i'd rather see it at a distance rather than charging at me. >> luckily the moose got tired after a short chase. my wife and i were running once and we ran across a moose. she's like let's hide, let's hide. i was like let's go look at the moose. >> that is not a good idea. your wife was right, you were wrong. coming up, the new rules just out for mortgages and how they're supposed to protect you, the homeowner. there are a lot of warning lights

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we are minding your business this morning. u.s. stock futures are trading higher after some positive economic news out of china overnight. >> christine is here with the rest of the morning's business headlines. >> good morning. we're watching gun stocks today as well because a little fizzle taken out of the gun rally as cnn money puts it. you know, gun stocks have done well in the days after the newtown, connecticut, shooting because there's been this run on guns in this country. we had a record number of background checks in december for gun purchases. that's the way we can really track gun sales. i want to show you what the gun stocks look like. when you have the vice president using the words "executive orders" for some kind of limits on being able to sell a lot of ammunition or selling these ar-15 style semiautomatic modern sporting rifles, the gun stocks and gun retailers took a little bit of a hit but the rally is

still intact. they're still up over the last five days. you remember that dick's stopped selling ar-15s after the newtown shooting. but other retailers have not followed suit. and we've been reporting to you that wal-mart now another seller of guns and ammunition will be attending that meeting with the white house. also new out of washington today that will affect everyone in this country, new mortgage rules. lenlds lenders now have to make sure that you can repay a mortgage. imagine that. you have to prove you have money, a job, a decent credit score. of course credit score shows that you've been paying your bills on time. that you can afford the monthly payments. that you can afford all your other housing debts and expenses. a lender can't saddle a borrower with total debt exceeding 43% of income. no more deceptive teaser rates. remember people would get a very low mortgage rate and after two years it would pop up to a high

rate. no more ninja loans. that was no income, no job, no assets. can you imagine? that's why we had a financial crisis. now, this is meant to make sure people understand the kind of loan they're getting into. they're not snookered on the front end by some loan that's written really crazy. now, if you don't meet all of these qualifications, there are still some ways to get in and get a mortgage, but this is what a qualified loan will look like and this is meant to make sure that consumers are protected. >> it's a good thing. >> what's the one thing we need to know about our money. >> if you don't qualify for one of those loans, if you don't have that credit score, if you're worried you're not taking advantage of these really low mortgage rates, this is the year to fix your credit. mortgage rates will probably start creeping up by the end of the year. they're still very, very low. pay your bills on time every time and slowly but surely you'll raise your credit score. if you have a bunch of debt, if you start paying that debt down in big chunks every month, it will raise your credit score. >> quickly? how long does it take?

>> time haeals all wounds. a bankruptcy, a foreclosure stays on your credit score for seven years. but the most important thing you can do, pay your bills on time every time, pay down your debt and then you can qualify for those low mortgage rates. >> you have such good advice. thank you very much. appreciate it. 26 minutes after the hour right now. take a look at this. new jersey governor chris christie on the cover of "time" magazine this week. critics. they don't like it. not because of christie. they're kind of upset about the photo itself. we'll explain why coming up. daughter's like, "mom, wait up!" and i'm thinking, "shouldn't you have more energy than me? you're, like, eight!" [ male announcer ] for every 2 pounds you lose through diet and exercise alli can help you lose one more by blocking some of the fat you eat. simple. effective. advantage: mom. let's fight fat with alli. learn more, lose more at letsfightfat.com.

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the flu virus, it is running rampant. a surge of cases in a major u.s. city declaring a flu emergency. >> the veep and the nra. vice president biden hosts the powerful gun lobby group just hours from now in washington. and a really wonderful surprise. a couple who lost their home to

hurricane sandy sets eyes on their new house thanks to some really hard working and great volunteers. >> you're going to meet that lovely couple. >> welcome back to "early start," everyone. >> nice to have you this morning. 30 minutes past the hour. nasty, severe cases of flu are spreading with a vengeance and this is across the united states. the cdc's latest flu advisory suggesting 41 states are dealing with widespread activity. more than 2200 people hospitalized. the hardest-hit states, pennsylvania and south carolina. each reporting 22 flu-related deaths. massachusetts declaring a medical emergency there. 700 confirmed cases in boston. that's since october. and the rates, ten times higher than what they saw last year. so let's bring in cnn's senior medical correspondent, elizabeth cohen. she is in flower mound, texas, with details of one fatal case. elizabeth, what happened? >> reporter: you know, sometimes we forget that the flu can kill, even healthy people. so i spent yesterday with a family whose 17-year-old son,

max, he attended the church behind me. on december 21st he started not feeling well. now, max was a perfectly healthy kid. his parents thought, okay, so it's a virus. he then got better. a couple days later he was fine for another couple days and then he started to get worse. his parents brought him to a hospital. they were on vacation. it was a small hospital and they said his kidneys are failing and we need to get him out of here to a larger hospital. they put him on a helicopter. as he was getting on the helicopter, this is what he said to his mother. >> one of the last coherent things he said, he looked at me and there were some tears rolling down his face. >> he was scared. >> he was scared. he said, mom, i'm scared. i said i know, buddy, i am too. and then he saw me crying. he said, mom, it's going to be okay. you're going to be okay. i love you. >> reporter: now, when max went to that hospital, he went straight to the intensive care unit and four days later, he

died. he died of a bacterial infection that had set in after the flu. but he died because he got the flu. and his parents now and others have built this memorial, love to the max, to celebrate his life. >> from those pictures it looks like that's their only son as well. so a lot of parents are watching this, elizabeth, and they're scared about their own children. so what can we do to make sure that this doesn't happen? because this is a seemingly healthy child. no compromised immune system. >> reporter: no, no compromised immune system. unfortunately, this happens much more than you would think. i want to first say that when kids get the flu most of the time they do just fine. they're sick for a few days and then they're better. however, sometimes bad things happen. when they happen, they happen very quickly. here's a few things to look for. if your child gets better and then gets worse, which is what happened to max, that's not good. it means that perhaps a secondary bacterial infection has set in, seek medical care right away. also if your child is really lethargic and i mean really

lethargic, only wants to sleep, doesn't want to get out of bed, that's another sign things could get very bad very quickly. same thing if your child is confused. as a parent, i always err on the side of caution. talk to your pediatrician, talk to them often. even if they tell you it's just the flu, don't worry about it, keep going back and keep calling if you feel something is wrong. what doctors tell me is that mom and dad in this case really are the best doctors. if your child is not acting normally for your child, that's a huge red flag. >> that's absolutely fantastic advice. did max have a flu shot? >> reporter: max did not have a flu shot. i talked to his parents about that. and they understand that people should get flu shots. but they also noted that when they were on vacation, they were in a house with 15 relatives, and many of those relatives had had flu shots and they still got the flu. so while i always say get a flu shot, it's so important, i also want to be honest and say it's only about 60% effective, 6-0

percent effective. so get it because it's better than not getting a flu shot but it's not a guarantee that it will keep the flu away. >> elizabeth cohen, senior medical correspondent, thank you so much for that medical information. it's so brave of that family to come forward and share while they're grieving to help save lives. 35 minutes after the hour. taking a look at the top cnn trends this morning, joe biden and his gun violence commission preparing to meet face to face this afternoon with the nra. the vice president also making it clear that the president is considering using executive orders for some measures to bypass congress and the gun lobby to enact some new gun control measures. after months of speculation and second guessing, we're about to find out who the oscar nominees are. steven spielberg's "lincoln" is one of the films certain to be nominated for best picture, as is "zero dark thirty" about the decade-long hunt for osama bin laden. the nominations will be announced in los angeles just two hours from now. and our special oscar coverage

with soledad o'brien and "showbiz tonight's" a.j. hammer begins at 8:15 eastern. of course we'll bring you the nominations live. save the thimble, protect the hat. hasbro says it's replacing one of the game's tokens with one that's more representative of today's monopoly players. that means one of the pieces they have now wants to go and the company wants fans to vote on facebook for the piece they want to save. voting ends february 5th. >> what is the new piece? >> they haven't said yet. >> i want to know. somebody in my ear just said the iron should go. i'm going to agree. >> as longs they save the hat, i'm cool. it's a race against time to save whales that are trapped by ice. we go inside the rescue effort with an expert coming up. plus illegal use of the hands. a basketball fan caught on camera. with the spark miles card from capital one, thor gets great rewards for his small business! your boa! [ garth ] thor's small business earns double miles on every purchase, every day!

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39 minutes past the hour. soledad o'brien joins us with a look ahead on "starting point." >> lots happening this morning. vice president biden and his task force will sit down with the nra today. will they get anywhere on the efforts to curb gun violence or

could the president bypass the nra and congress to do it himself? we'll talk this morning with connecticut senator richard blumenthal and also joseph crowley. and he's known as the dog whisperer. cesar milan is here to talk about his new show and his new book which talks about simple tips on how to train your dog but also his own personal strug el elsz as well. and you've been talking about it all morning. who will walk away with the nomination? will it be hugh jackman? oscar nominations will be announced at 8:30 a.m. eastern time. a.j. hammer will join me as we look at all the nominees in a live special that begins at 8:15 a.m. on "starting point." >> it's a big, big moment here. nominations live as they're happening. >> let's bet. >> i bet it's "lincoln." >> i'm going with "django."

>> i love that but i think it's a long shot. >> we have a pool going. 40 minutes after the hour right now. we have a sad and yet absolutely striking image to show you from the frozen edges of canada. 11 killer whales are trapped, surrounded by ice on all sides and they're running out of time. the orcas are taking turns jumping up through that small hole in the ice to breathe. today the canadian government is sending experts out to see if there's anything they can do to help save these whales. the problem is the nearest ice breaker crews are a day and a half away. the whales are stranded near a small quebec village on hudson bay. i want to bring in an expert on this subject. william hurley is with the georgia aquarium in atlanta, one of the biggest aquariums in the world. let me start off by simply asking how precarious is this situation right now for these whales? >> well, you know it's terribly difficult for them and it's distressful to watch as humans when we see these animals

struggling to breathe and looking for a way out. it doesn't look good. these things do happen a lot in the arctic, but it doesn't look good. >> how long can they survive like this? >> well, you know, they're air breathing mammals so the question of being able to have air is the most important things. some of the locals have an interest in trying to feed the animals which is probably not as helpful at this point in time. they're probably not going to be able to do this, they're going to have to take off and look for somewhere else to breathe. >> that's the biggest threat, that the ice will continue to freeze over. >> when you talk about ice breakers and chain sawing ice blocks, you're also talking about adding a lot of noise to these animals' environment and many times that will cause them to panic and want to take off and that would be detrimental. >> there's a lot of talk about why these whales are here to begin with. it's an unusual location for this time of year. >> well, you know, we're seeing a lot of changes in the arctic. and in this case it looks like these animals were probably looking for food and found

themselves in a place they wouldn't normally we exploring and mother nature took a turn and brought the ice in quickly. this is one of the number one killers for marine mammals in the arctic areas. we didn't used to have iphones in places where we could spot them. >> we know the ice breakers are about a day and a half away. is there anything else that we know that can be done to help them? >> well, we certainly have had some success with certain ice hole situations where we've been able to create sort of leap frog holes for the animals to escape and follow but that certainly counts on them following you and in many cases they won't do that, they'll try to stay away from you. other than keeping that hole open or creating a few more, there's not a lot human can say do given the depth and remote nature of where these animals are. >> there's a famous case a lot of people remember from point bear owe, alaska, where there were whales trapped in the ice there. they just made a movie out of it and the local people cult these rectangles out and made a long, long path for the whales to swim

to safety. two of the whales survived there. are there lessons from that famous case that can be applied here? >> certainly it's an effort that can be made. in that circumstance while two of the animals did survive, there's certainly many other stories where people have tried to use this strategy and found that the animals took off and were never seen again. so it may be the last-ditch effort but it doesn't mean that's always going to be the successful route. >> william hurley from the georgia aquarium, thanks for joining us this morning. we're certainly pulling for these whales. the pictures are stunning but sad at the same time. thanks very much. >> sure. >> wow, you know, what he said that is most surprising to me, i guess, is this happens so often yet we don't know about it because we're not monitoring with our phones and stuff. very sad. i hope they make it. 44 minutes past the hour. let's get you up to date on our top stories. president obama tapping his white house chief of staff to be the next treasury secretary. the nomination of jack lew is expected to be announced this afternoon. lew is considered a budget expert. he's had two stints as director of the office of management and

budget. afghanistan's president, hamid karzai, will receive full military honors when he visits the pentagon this morning for a meeting with defense secretary leon panetta. he is expected they will -- or it's expected that they will discuss the american troop situation in afghanistan after the nato combat mission officially ends next year. tomorrow karzai meets with president obama. all right, so it won't take long to cover the entire list of new inductees to baseball's hall of fame because there are none. one of the big reasons, of course, the steroid era. baseball writers voted to keep roger clemens, barry bonds and sammy sosa out of the hall of fame for now. i think the biggest injustice was to craig biggio. he came the closest. i think next year he'll get in. check out this fan during last night's college basketball game. look, he shoved unlv guard anthony marshall after he

stepped out of bounds chasing a loose ball. fortunately the ref was able to restrain marshall and the fan was escorted out of the building. >> not a good idea to shove the players. >> i was wondering if he was heching him get back in but in slow mo it does look like a shove. tone owe soprano's hometown paper says some italian americans are upset at "time" magazine's latest cover which shows governor chris christie in a mug shot-like pose and there's the headline that says "the boss." he even took issue suggesting it made him look like a mob boss. i guess you could say they were talking about bruce springsteen but i'm not sure about that. we should say that "time" magazine is on the other hand by the parent company of this network. from the heart break of losing their home to hurricane sandy to the surprise of beholding their brand new house, it was all built by volunteer hands, the grateful couple joins us live from breezy point, new york, and that is coming up.

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good morning to you, new york city. it is 42 degrees right now. a little bit later 45 degrees. a bit of a heat spell for us

here. we're about to introduce you to bert and jean matz. jean is a two-time cancer survivor and two months agho their home was lost to hurricane sandy. it was flooded out. when volunteers from operation blessing came along telling them they'd gut the house for them, they felt blessed. but the volunteers redid the entire home. they did it in three weeks and they surprised them. >> one, two, three. >> welcome home! >> bert and jean metz are here with us. they are in front of their completely fixed home. thank you so much for joining us this morning. we really appreciate it. jean, i want to start with you because the look on your face, you were not expecting a full renovation, were you?

>> not at all. not at all. we were just so blessed that operation blessing was helping us, we never dreamt they would go to this extent. it was amazing. >> and gorgeous. the house is absolutely gorgeous. >> well, we're watching video right now as the two of you are talking to us about the house. tell us about what you saw when you walked in and how it was different from your original home. >> it was so much more modern and all the new appliances. they made it a home for us. we cannot believe. i thought they were interior decorators come in to do it, but it was all operation blessing and the talent of these people that dedicate their time. >> time. >> it's an amazing process. >> it was a whole host of

volunteers. >> they did a wonderful job. >> hundreds. >> we're looking at the pictures. >> it's amazing. >> it is amazing. >> i understand that you sold your primary residence in brooklyn last year to help an ailing family member and that you actually invested your life savings in this home and then the storm hit it. so what does this mean for the two of you? >> well, at first we were extremely devastated, and then our faith kicked into place and we just knew somehow we would survive, but we didn't really know how. and we had a builder come and help us, but unfortunately he had a heart attack and didn't complete the process of the work he was supposed to. so then we survived that and when hurricane came and wiped out some of the things that were newly done, we were truly devastated. and we to this day can't

understand what made our car to the tent that said operation blessing. and my daughter went in, in front of us, with my other daughter and said what? we really need help. >> we need help. and we did. >> desperately. >> we needed a lot of help because we're not in a condition to do the hard type of work that had to be done. and these people would come down and just did everything. >> young people, old people. >> volunteers. >> just willing to do anything that would help. it was very humbling and awakening experience. >> it's so nice to hear your story and to see your faces and the happiness. jeanne, i know you're a two-time cancer survivor. you mentioned this huge volunteer effort. there were people even from your community that helped to rebuild your home. so are we having a big open house? a big party to celebrate?

>> well, eventually i hope to do something to say thank you in some small way. never can you do all that you feel you really have to do. we feel we've been so blessed and we just can't believe all this has taken place. >> well, i cannot tell you how happy we are for you. >> unbelievable. >> look at that. so sweet. >> thank you. >> thank you for sharing your story with us and all the pictures. >> thank you so much. >> we appreciate having you this morning. bert and jeanne metz. we're very excited for you all morning. i think the academy award for the absolute cutest couple in the history in america goes to bert and jeanne metz. will you come hang out with me sometime? you're the cutest couple ever. >> that's fantastic. i am so glad they got the help they need. that is so nice to hear. today's best advice straight from the u.s. senate is coming up.

later on "starting point" we're going big on the academy award nominations. soledad is joined by a.j. hammer and we'll have the announce maen mentes live from hollywood. it's all right here on cnn. what are you doing? nothing. are you stealing our daughter's school supplies and taking them to work? no, i was just looking for my stapler and my... this thing. i save money by using fedex ground and buy my own supplies. that's a great idea. i'm going to go... we got clients in today. [ male announcer ] save on ground shipping at fedex office. but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now i can be in the scene. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory

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just a few minutes before the hour right now. as always, we wrap it up with best advice. >> and today it comes from senator ron johnson from wisconsin. >> my parents were obviously my greatest role models and they always told me, always be kind, always be honest. treat people with kindness. if you treat them honestly, it's a pretty good way of going through life. >> honesty is the best policy. >> that's exactly what went through my mind. >> speaking of honesty, what are your picks for the nomination today? >> i loved "django" and "life of pi" two very different movies and long shots. but i would pick "django." >> i liked "argo" more than "lincoln" but i think "lincoln" will get the most nominations. >> i've seen none of them. >> i like "the avengers" most of all. i'd love to see the hulk get best actor but i don't think that's going to happen.

>> all right. we want to hear your predictions and your opinions on the oscar nominations. go to starting point's blog at cnn.com/startingpoint. we're asking for your picks for best actor, best actress and best picture, not the hulk. it's #cnnnoms. keep in touch with us throughout the morning. we want to know who you pick. >> and you can vote for the hulk if you want. >> no, you can't. >> yes, you can. that is all for "early start." >> "starting point" with soledad o'brien starts right now. welcome, everybody. our starting point this morning, hitting early and hitting hard. a widespread flu outbreak killing dozens of people, overflowing hospitals, causing calls for public health emergencies. we'll tell you what you need to know about the severe strain that is now circulating. and sitting down with the nra. the vice president hears from gun advocates today, as he says the president could bypass congress to get gun l